THE Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is looking to upgrade and modernize the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) in order to ensure its efficiency in performing its mandate.
In a statement, Labor Secretary Francis Tolentino bared plans to ensure faster and more efficient delivery of labor justice for workers nationwide.
"We are not overhauling the existing, functioning, well-oiled system, but adding some 2 percent, 3 percent of innovation… without disrupting what you are doing,” said Tolentino.
Among the improvements being eyed is the creation of a National Academy for Labor Justice in a bid to help incoming arbiters and current commissioners.
"We envision the institution as a dedicated space that would help DOLE lawyers fine-tune and perfect their quasi-judicial capabilities," said the labor chief.
He said they are also planning to establish satellite offices in local government offices, especially in areas where cases are piling up.
"Cases are mostly concentrated in the National Capital Region, Central Luzon, and Calabarzon," related Tolentino.
The NLRC is a quasi-judicial agency attached to the DOLE with the primary function to adjudicate labor and management disputes. (Anton Banal/SunStar Philippines)
